Asset Remarketing

Asset Remarketing is an industry of it's own and although it may appear to be intuitively easy (what can be easier than listing something on Ebay, right?) it is anything but. We regularly run across companies who imagine they are saving money (or making more) by remarketing equipment themselves. We have compiled a brief list of some of the fanciful thought processes that are typical in choosing this route.

Give to Employees. The logic is impecable - the computer and monitor would make an ideal home computer and the employees will appreciate a free computer. The reality is that your IT department now owns any problems with that unit, including software and hardware support. Add to this that the Windows OS is not actually legally transferrable and then you have the problem of data security. If you wipe the drive then your employee now has to purchase and install an operating system rather than using the one it had which you will not receive thanks for.

Sell it Yourself. Once again, the logic seems to make sense - your IT personnel know the equipment and what it does so why not use them to sell it and keep all the sales revenue? Unfortunately it isn't quite so straightforward. Remarketing is time consuming and whilst easy to sell at fire-sale prices, maximizing revenue is a whole new skill set which takes years to learn. Then there is the time spent away from doing the job they were hired to do. Someone has to create and manage a returns policy, create a Paypal account, a testing process; the list goes on. Without the full spectrum of sales support services you are unlikely to even get fire-sale prices, let alone top dollar. Our advice is to let us handle everything.

Send to Auction. This is easy - accumulate enough old equipment and when the room is full take it to the auction site and collect the money, easy. Actually it is not. What about the data? What do you do with the stuff that doesn't sell (which you now have to collect). Auctioneers are not cheap and certainly don't know electronics - everything is sold 'as-is' and so prices are indeed fire-sale - then you have to pay the auctioneer, the costs of getting everything moved to the auction site then collecting (and disposing of) anything left over.

Your company expertise is the reason you are still in business. What would you say to a potential customer who thought they could do what you do just as well as you? The clear message here is don't try to do this yourself!

So, why use R3Ewaste as opposed to another electronics recycler? Well, firstly there is a difference between remarketing and recycling. Many remarketers focus on selling the good stuff and send the rest to a recycler - usually the one who pays the most regardless of environmental stewardship. Most electronics recyclers just break everything down into component parts and their remarketing ability is very limited. R3Ewaste is an R2 certified E-waste recycler that specialises in testing, refurbishing and remarketing used electronics.

To maximise returns here is a list of a few things we have learned over the years.

Do Not Hoard. IT infrastructure is expensive and is seemely obsolete almost as soon as it is first installed. The breakneck rate of change in the IT sector means that a retired unit that cost many thousands of dollars just a few years earlier devalues almost daily. Even a few days delay may move an item from having a value to being worthless. So we advise regular pickups of smaller quantities rather than truckloads of accumulated equipment.

Do Not Remove Hard Drives. It is easy to think that removing a hard drive is the safest and easiest way to keep your data secure. This is wrong and expensive. If you do not wipe or destroy the drive the data is still there and properly erasing the data is either extremely time consuming or requires expensive equipment. Then you have to verify that the data has gone - another process. We do all that for you and take responsibility for your data by issuing you with a certificate which transfers any liability for data falling into the wrong hands to us. There is another reason - when people remove drives they often damage something in the process.

Everything Has a Value. That old dot matrix printer could be worth $200 - provided the plastic is not broken. That really old PC from about 20 years ago could contain a $500 processor chip. The boxes containing hundreds of tape backup media that has not been used for years - $10 to $30 each (once wiped). The salient point here is that just because it is old does not mean it is worthless. Newer equipment will typically have more potential buyers but it is not automatically more valuable.

Let us Handle Everything. By this I mean let us do all the removal and transportation. Nothing is more value destroying than breaks or dents. If things have to be moved to a temporary location have us do it.

Not All ITAD Companies are Equal. The people at R3Ewaste have been doing this for many years and know the industry very well - including our competitors. We typically return 30% more value to our customers than our closest competitor with greater transparency all whilst observing the high environmental standards expected from an R2 certified recycler.

At R3Ewaste, we believe we have a competitive advantage over all other ITADs. We won't charge you fees, period. Our process and efficiencies provide the profit to pay you for the residual value of your assets.